The JIL Labor Flash Vol.48
Email Journal 15.08.2003
Statistical Reports
Recent Statistical Survey Reports
Current Topics
A study group of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare proposes
raising the mandatory retirement age to 65
Public Policies
Zero wage hike reported as the minimum wage revision standard/criteria
News Clippings
Survey on companies with good working conditions ...etc
Special Issue
Things that changed and things that did not change, as revealed in
the proposal and issues raised in the FY2003 White Paper on Health
and Welfare and FY2002 Basic Survey on Employment Management of Woman
Statistical Reports
-Recent Statistical Survey Reports July 2003-
Features
Employment Status Survey (2002)
Survey on Balancing Work with Child Care, Nursing Care ...etc
http://www.jil.go.jp/estatis/esaikin/2003/e2003-07.htm
Current Topics
-A study group of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare proposes
raising the mandatory retirement age to 65-
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare's group to study future
measures concerning the employment of elderly individuals compiled a
draft report, recommending the strengthening of links between employment
and pensions. The recommendation is made based on the premise that the
age of pension payment eligibility will be raised incrementally to 65.
At present, the Law Concerning the Stabilization of Employment of
Older Persons obligates companies to establish a retirement age of 60.
However, companies are further obligated to "make efforts" to ensure
employment up to the age of 65. The group has been studying extending
the mandatory retirement age because if the present situation continues
unchanged, in ten years' time, individuals would face a 5-year zero
income period after retirement.
The report called for the creation of rules to prevent companies
from dismissing employees due to reason of age until they reach 65.
On the other hand, it acknowledged the difficulty companies face if
they were to individually extend the guaranteed period of employment
for workers. The report concluded with the recommendation that a system
for ensuring employment opportunities through labor market mechanisms
should be established.
Proposals made in this report of guaranteeing employment of workers
until the age of 65 as long as they are motivated and capable while
demanding employees to make efforts to maintain and enhance employability,
are expected to be submitted to the Labour Policy Council for deliberation
by members as well as by labor and management.
Public Policies
-Zero wage hike reported as the minimum wage revision standard/criteria-
In our JLF issue a year ago (Vol. 25, Special Issue), we described
how the Central Minimum Wages Council decided against indicating any
wage revision standard/criteria, and provided a brief explanation of
Japan's minimum wage system.
A report for this fiscal year was submitted to the Minister of Health,
Labour and Welfare in late July, and indicated a wage revision standard
/criteria of "zero yen."
Continued on;
http://www.jil.go.jp/english/archives/emm/2001-2003/2003b/vol.48/0wagehike.html
News Clippings
-Survey on companies with good working conditions-
Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun conducted a survey on the personnel and labor
affairs systems of large corporations. At the same time, it conducted
a survey on working conditions that businesspeople placed importance
on, to identify an image of a company in which employees find it easy
to work.
The survey targeted 390 companies of which 160 companies sent in
valid responses.
The businesspeople survey targeted 2,000 subjects, and was carried
out over the Internet. Responses were sent in by 1,055 people comprising
541 men and 514 women.
(Nikkei Sangyo Shimbun, July)
Continued on;
http://www.jil.go.jp/english/archives/emm/2001-2003/2003b/vol.48/goodworking.htm
-Takefuji's case to be sent to the prosecutor's office for alleged
unpaid overtime work-
Consumer finance giant Takefuji was alleged to have made its employees
work overtime without pay under orders from its head office. The Osaka
Prefectural Labour Bureau will send papers to the public prosecutor's
office, charging Takefuji as well as its former board directors in
charge of general affairs, with suspected violation of the Labour
Standards Law.
Takefuji has reportedly paid a total of 3.5 billion yen in unpaid
overtime allowance covering the past two-year period, to about 5,000
employees who were made to work overtime without pay.
The direct charges for which the papers have been sent to the
prosecutor's office pertain to a criminal case in which three employees
working in Takefuji's Osaka Branch Office from 2000 to 2001 allegedly
were forced to work overtime for the number of hours exceeding the
maximum limit stipulated under the company's labor-management agreement,
as well as suspicion of failure to pay approximately 500,000 yen worth
of overtime allowance.
At the time, Takefuji had established 25 hours per month for male
employees and 6 hours per month for female employees as the maximum
number of hours to which payment of overtime work would apply. The
company's head office reportedly instructed branch offices throughout
Japan and other business offices not to report overtime work hours
exceeding the upper limit.
(Yomiuri Shimbun, July)
Special Issue
-Things that changed and things that did not change, as revealed in
the proposal and issues raised in the FY2003 White Paper on Health
and Welfare and FY2002 Basic Survey on Employment Management of Woman-
According to the FY2002 Basic Survey on Employment Management of
Woman that was conducted in October 2002 targeting about 10,000
business offices with five or more regular employees, 61.4% of the
business offices with five or more employees and 81.1% of those with
30 or more employees had a system of childcare leave in place. These
figures have increased by 7.9 percentage points and 4.1 percentage
points, respectively, over the previous survey conducted in FY1999.
A total of 64.0% of the female workers took childcare leave, up 7.6
percentage points over the previous survey.
Continued on;
http://www.jil.go.jp/english/archives/emm/2001-2003/2003b/vol.48/wp_emw.html
